You Be My Legs, I'll Be Your Wings
by karkatvantas0626
Summary: The Winchester brothers get in an accident and Dean is forced to undergo surgery to have a chance at hopefully using his legs again.
1. Accidents Happen

Pain was the first thing that Dean felt as his eyes slowly fluttered open. The last thing that flashed in his mind was a flash of light searing his eyes and a ringing that made his ears ring. Any other details and thoughts were fuzzy in his mush of a mind. As everything started to clear up, he started to look around the bright white room. A hospital. A trench coat on a chair. Sam passed out near the window. The rhythmic beeping from the heart monitor filled the room until Dean cleared his throat to try and get his little brothers attention. Sam jolted awake, eyes widening as he saw his brother had woken up. "I thought you were just gonna keep sleeping, " he spoke in a worried tone, though he was trying to lighten the mood. The patients brows furrowed as they were interrupted by the door opening and Castiel walked in, having taken off his trench coat and suit coat, it made him look smaller. However his muscles were still clearly seen through his white button up. Seeing his friend awake made his face brighten as a thin smile cross his lips. It'd been awhile since any of them had even come close to a smile.

"Ah, Dean, how do you feel?" Cas approached the chair where his coats had been draped, turning it to sit and face the injured human.

"I feel amazing, what do you think? What the hell happened?"

"There was an accident, " Sam's voice trailed off, pulling the other's heads his way.

"I had figured that out by the hospital bed, details would help."

The young brother flicked his eyes to the white tiled floor before he hurriedly stood up, mumbling about finding the doctor as he rushed out the door. The two men were left alone and slightly bewildered. "What has his knickers in a twist?" Dean's brow had somehow become even more furrowed than before.

"Your brother doesn't wear knickers, so there's no way anything could be twisting them, " the angel tilted his head to the side, the corners of his mouth turning up, happy of informing Dean of his misinformation. There was a deep sigh as the bedridden man shook his head.

"That's not what I meant. What's bothering him? It's not like him to run from something as simple as telling me what happened."

"He feels blame for a part of it, guilt as well."

Dean's face fell, confused as thoughts bounced around before they were silenced once more by the creaking of the unoiled hinges of the door. A small man with short blonde hair and dark hazel eyes framed by glasses walked in first, followed by a shorter nurse and Sammy. The nurse began to check his vitals and mess with his IV while Sam took his place back by the window. Cas slipped his hands onto his friend's arm, holding it tightly as the doctor spoke.

"Hello Dean, I'm Dr. Darnel Gress. You were in an accident that has caused part of the nerves in the lower half of your body to become severely damaged. This has caused your legs to be immobile for the moment, however there is a way we could fix them, at least enough for you to walk again. It's a very complicated procedure and it may not even work."

"So you're telling me that even after that I still may not be able to walk. Ever?"

"Sadly, yes. But I'll do the best I can. If the procedure works you'll have to go through weeks of therapy and check ups almost daily to make sure the nerves don't become damaged further."

The doctors patient was quiet as he took in the gravity of the situation. His brothers mouth seemed to be hanging on loose screws as the nurse left. Cas gripped Dean's arm tighter, his smile having vanished. "I'll let the three of you talk for a while and ill be back in a few hours with a schedule."

And with that Dr. Gress followed the nurse out and shut the door behind him. Sam stood, slowly pacing to his brothers side. All of them had seemed to forget how to swallow, feeling large lumps in their throats that prevented any words from coming out. Dean could feel the pinpricks of tears swelling in his eyes. If he couldn't walk, he couldn't hunt. He wouldn't be able to protect Sammy and-

"It'll be alright Dean." The sound of the angel's voice snapped him out of his darkening thoughts. He looked into those blue eyes that seemed to be as deep as the oceans. It was calming, slowing his thoughts and letting him take deep breathes as his eyes blinked the tears away. As he gradually nodded, Sam turned to look out the window over the city they were in. Portland, Oregon. It had begun to drizzle outside, dark clouds looming. After a second he looked back with a seemingly pained smile. With a glance to Cas, he inhaled a deep breath.

"How can you be sure this time Cas? You're not at full power and last I checked most angels hate up. I won't even mention selling souls. How is it gonna be alright this time?"

"With you Winchesters, it always somehow seems to be, " he spoke with empathy, eyebrows in a raised furrow. It was true. Even though it always seemed to go wrong, Sam and Dean Winchester had survived all of it. Demons, Hell, Purgatory, the Apocalypse, even Lucifer himself. Both had always come out with their guns blazing. Castiel's words made Dean smirk as he fiddled his fingers in his lap. His whole body felt numb due to the painkillers running through system, which was probably best. The downfall was how tired he felt. As Sam and Cas continued to talk his eyelids became droopier and droopier till he could barely keep them open. Finally he succumbed to sleep and the voices of his friend and brother drifted off.


	2. Leg Pains

A few hours had gone by, the moon already up by the time Dean awoke. Sam was sleeping in the same spot he had been before. He almost looked like a kid again with his large body curled into a small ball and his hair falling in his face. A hand on the man's shoulder brought his thoughts away from his brother and to the suited figure beside him. As his eyes worked slowly he could make out the baby facial features of Castiel. His body relaxed and he gave a curt smile up in the others direction. Outside, the sky had cleared and the stars were almost visible, if not for the bright lights coming from the city that gave off a pale yellow aura. The patient winced as he tried to scoot his body up. The pain flowed from his hips and seemed to just end before his knees. It bothered Dean that he still couldn't remember what had happened. All he knew was that they had come here about a Siren, only for Cas to tell them it wasn't a normal Siren. Killing hunters, only demons and monsters with a grudge seemed to do that. Clearly that way of thinking was wrong, unless the monster had been hired to go after certain people.

"He wouldn't leave when they told him to, he promised to stay here till you get better," Cas spoke suddenly, but quietly.

"Sam?"

"Who else?"

The human chuckled silently, nodding. "I remember the case, but what happened to the Siren? Did you two catch it, gank it?"

"Not exactly. It's better if Sam tells you," he said with pursed lips, moving his eyes to the window. Castiel walked around the bed to look out the window, as Sam had hours ago when the news came in, his trenchcoat flowing slightly from his brisk pace. The sky had started to lighten, a soft pink haze glowing on the horizon. It seemed like a good sign to Dean. The rain had gone, his family and friend were with him. For once he wasn't alone in something.

From the other side of the room, Sam started to groggily get up, yawning loudly. After rubbing away the crust that had formed in the corners of his eyes his stood up to stretch, slowly walking towards his brother. He sat in the chair that had previously seated Cas and patted Dean's arm. The chilly air was all too clearly awkward from yesterday when the younger had decided to run out of the room instead of explain what had happened to cause the present predicament for the elder. Instead of barraging his little brother with questions first thing in the morning, Dean decided to let him have a few hours of peace, at least till the Doctor came in for a checkup and a schedule. Until then they could watch the sun rise and set colorful fire to the sky. As the minutes passed, they could see the streets beneath them beginning to get livelier with people heading to work and school, walking their pets and going to breakfast. People of all sorts were getting on the now buzzing streets.

An hour or two passed before Dr. Gress quietly slipped in and drew the boys attention. In his arms were a few packets of paper that he handed to all three. A book filled with the exact details of what would happen if the procedure went wrong and what could go wrong if it went right. It seemed to hold every possibility that could come true if Dean went through with the only thing that could give him a chance at walking again; his only chance at being the hunter that's protects his baby brother again. While he slowly read the three hundred page booklet, Sam sped through it, worry causing his brow to furrow. These were possibilities that he wasn't ready to face yet. He couldn't hunt without his brother, only that empty soulless husk could do that. He needed his brother, that had been established long ago due to their serenely strong dependance on each other. Without Dean, he'd lose his last bit of sanity and any spec of human that he had left in him. Tears began to make his eyes sting as they rolled down his face. It was too much for him as he dropped the book on the chair and stormed out to find the bathrooms and collect himself. Sam had to be strong now. His brother was in pain and might never be able to hunt again and yet he was still strong as steel, while Sam felt he was still acting like the little baby brother everyone always pitied.

"Excuse him Doc, I think this is all a lot for all of us. So why do we have to read this?"

"In case anything goes wrong, you need to know what it might mean, as do they since they are what family you have here at the moment. We also need to know what to do if you flatline."

"Bring me back to life." The words were instant, without a thought as they rolled off Dean's tongue. He wanted to be dead more than anything but he knew he couldn't just up and quite. There were still things he had to do. People to save. Things to kill. A family name and business to keep alive.

"Good, good. We also figured a time for the procedure. Tomorrow night at eight o'clock. After breakfast you won't be able to have anything, so if there's anything that you really want, I suggest that you have it now."

With that, Dr. Gress finished and walked out, passing Sam as he returned to the room. Dean repeated the doctor's words, turning to Cas and asking him to go grab all of them some pie, placing his gaze back on his brother once the angel vanished. They were silent, the words slowly sinking in. Tomorrow would be the dictator of the rest of their lives. If the brothers would still hunt, if one would be alone, if one would be chained to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Strained noises from the glass brought their half attention to the window that was being pushed by the heavy winds outside. It didn't take much longer for Cas to return with three slices of cherry pie.

"Here Dean," he spoke as he handed a container and a white plastic fork to each of the brothers, putting the third slice of pie on the table next Dean, with the fork placed nicely beside it. "You can have that one too, I figured you'd need more than one slice to last you to your surgery."

The elder brother gave weak laugh and nod as he started to eat the sweet pie, his mind wandering.


	3. Electric Pulses

It was the morning of the surgery that would soon determine Dean Winchester's life. As he shoved the last bite of cherry pie into his mouth, he huffed, his mind racing. It hadn't stopped since he found out when the procedure would be. Eight o'clock on the twenty-fourth of January. An ironic birthday present if there ever had been. His brother had gone off on a run to the store to try and find some food for himself, and by store he had probably meant the gas station not far from the hospital. Cas was pacing quietly by the window while clouds could be seen rolling in from the horizon. After loudly placing the plastic container and fork on his bedside table, Dean rolled up his napkin, tossing it at the angel's head. It seemed to catch his attention, irritated as he was. He gave a questioning grunt before returning to pacing quicker, causing his trenchcoat to flow behind. With an eyeroll in the direction of the baby in the trenchcoat Dean cleared his throat loudly.

"What is it Dean?"

"You and Sam haven't told me squat about what happened for me to not be able to feel half of my legs. I thought at least you would've told me something instead of being Mr. Moody."

"I told you, it'll be better if Sam tells you himself."

"Not good enough. Cas, come on, just tell me something, I think I'm the one in the position of most deserving to know."

"Fine," Cas paused, sittin in a chair before continuing, "the Siren came to see you two, Sam and you fought, I caught the Siren and put it in the trunk of your car."

"Why is the Siren in my Baby? Why didn't you two just kill the damned thing?"

At these questions the angel went silent, not having an answer that made sense.

"Damn it Cas!" Dean slammed his fists on his numb legs in exasperation. That was the end of their talking before Sam returned with two bags full of food and drink for the brothers as well as some magazines, books, and movies for Castiel to try and keep him n the least, entertained. By then it was late in the afternoon, nearly half past five. Out in the hall could be heard nurses being ordered around by the deep voice of Dr. Gress and wheels squeaking on the old vinyl composition tile that was scarred from rushing gurneys. They were all in a rush, whether for the upcoming surgery or the rush that seemed to have flooded in after the downpour started. From what the group could tell, there'd been a number of fatal car accidents but the rain just seemed to wash the blood away only to have the road smeared with more.

It was soon ten to eight and the doctor came in with an entourage. In a rush, they wheeled him out of the room and off to his destiny. Sam started to chew on his freshly growing nails, nervous and impatient. After a few hours his nails were stubby once again and Cas had disappeared. The younger brother presumed to go silently watch the procedure. The room was silent, besides Sam's constant nail chewing. The rains had stopped for a while, though there was the constant honking, wheel screeches, yelling, loud music, and brakes whining. The city noises didn't seem to distract the brother and Angel as they sat, paced, starred, or whatever else to try and keep their minds moving to no avail. Seconds felt like hours, hours like days. Bags had started forming under Sam's dark hazel eyes that made the deep purple skin even more noticeable. Cas had long disappeared to who knows where about an hour before the door slowly opened and the doctors assistants rolled in an unconscious Dean Winchester who had bandages along his mid thighs. Nearly falling as he tried to stand, Sam rushed to his side, taking his brothers muscular arm into his own.

"Did the surgery go okay, did something happen?"

The two women that had rolled him in looked to each other before the shorter of the two spoke softly. "We won't necessarily know till he wakes and tries to feel his legs and move. I'm sorry sir."

The taller brothers eyes fell as sadness filled them. He sat patiently as the two women left the room. There was a whoosh before Castiel appeared at the end of the bed with a worried gaze on the brothers. As he stepped closer he pursed his lips and kept silent. Sam could feel that the Angel knew something but didn't have the courage to ask in the moment. Both stayed quiet long into the night with stress, worry, and guilt keeping both of their tongues glued inside their mouths. It was dawn before either said anything.

Cas stood, walking to stand in front of the young brother, his tone weary of the words he chose to say. "Do you plan on telling him?"

"Not yet, not till we know for certain if he can walk or not."

"So you plan on not saying anything if he is mobile again?"

"Cas, that isn't what I meant. I mean it'll change what I say."

"Why would the end result change how you say what actually happened?"

It was true that it shouldn't matter what happens, what Sam would say should stay the same, but all humans had a habit of twisting situations to make them the victim instead of the bad guy. The angel reached forward with two fingers and pressed them against the others forehead to read his thoughts.

"I see," Cas paused as his eyes searched the blank space near the floor, "You plan on twisting the story to suit your own needs." With those words they were again quiet till Dean's eyes fluttered open. The light that shone in from the morning sun stung his forest filled eyes, causing him to raise a tired hand to block the rays. The two other bodies in the room turned slowly to watch the elder brother sit up tiredly and look around at them both. He winced as he scooted his legs up in a jagged movement. They were clearly still sore and in the process of trying to properly heal this time. Any movement to them felt like electricity being shot through Dean's entire body, going from his toes to the tips of his fingers to his nose. It felt strange to have the new life feeling running through his thirty year old body again. Pulses continued to run through his legs, giving Dean a feeling of strength as he moved his leg to the edge of the bed. Cas jumped from his seat, legitimately surprised at his friend's leg movements. As nothing ever seemed to surprise the angelic being, the man questioned his reaction.

"What? What is it Cas?"

"When you were unconscious, and Sam was asleep, I checked to see if the procedure had worked-"

"And?"

"You shouldn't be able to move your leg."


End file.
